With over 10 million children attending afterschool programming, afterschool care providers can play an important role when it comes to expanding healthy eating and active living opportunities for children. An October 2014 report produced by the Afterschool Alliance highlights the latest research on how parents feel about the quality of afterschool care their children receive. For the survey, 13,709 households with children, throughout the U.S., answered an in-depth on-line survey. Key findings from report include: 80% of parents believed that afterschool programs should help children be active (82% of African American and Latino parents believed programs should help children be active)
70% of parents believed that afterschool programs should provide children with healthy ...
The Navajo Nation, faced with rising rates of obesity, has decided to take make some healthy changes. On Jan. 30, 2014, the Navajo Nation Council voted in favor of the Healthy Diné Nation Act to increase the sales tax on junk food, by two percent and eliminate the five percent sales tax on healthy foods such as fruits, vegetables, water, nuts and seeds. What is considered junk? Sugary drinks and snack foods that are highly processed and low in nutritional quality including chips, candy, pastries and the like. Revenue from the tax would be deposited into a special fund that will help develop projects such as wellness centers, community parks, basketball courts, running trails, community gardens and health education classes. The bill was sent to Navajo Nation President Ben ...
Spanish-language TV advertising for sugary drinks and energy shots increased by 44% over the past few years, according to a new report. The report, Sugary Drink FACTS 2014, updates the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity's 2011 research on sugary drinks and advertising to children. The report highlights industry progress but also indicates that companies still have a long way to go to improve their marketing practices and the nutritional quality of their youth-marketed products. This is particularly relevant to Latino youth, who consume more sugary drinks than their white peers, with 74% of Latinos having their first sugary drink before age 2. Some progress was made in marketing to Latino kids: On Spanish-language TV, Kraft Foods and Red Bull eliminated virtually ...
In the Latino community, we love to share delicious home-cooked meals with our family and friends. But sometimes it’s hard to plan a meal that’s both satisfying and healthy. Do Latinos have to sacrifice bold traditional flavors to ensure their family has a well-balanced meal? Certainly not! With a little planning, openness, and creativity, Latinos can prepare tasty dishes the whole family will love. Join us and our co-hosts as we tweet about healthy cooking and Latino foods at the next #SaludTues Tweetchat. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Healthier Recipes for Latino Foods”
DATE: Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2014
TIME: Noon CST (1:00 PM ET)
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
Co-HOSTS: @SaludToday, @ClaudiaZapata! We'll open the floor to your stories and ...
Many San Jose neighborhoods rely on local corner stores and mini marts for their food purchases – businesses where snack foods and sugary beverages are plentiful while fresh fruits and vegetables are scarce. The Health Trust, the same group behind "Fresh Carts" mobile food carts, will showcase the first healthy conversion of a San Jose corner store on September 17th, 2014, 10am-11am as part of the launch of the Good. To Go. initiative. The Health Trust Good. To Go. initiative is increasing the number of places where fresh and healthy foods can be conveniently and affordably purchased. Equally important, Good. To Go. will market these new “fun, fast, fresh” foods as a superior competitor to packaged convenience foods. Emit Mini Mart is one of dozens of stores participating in ...
With all the Smart Snack changes rolling out in schools nationwide this fall, attention may begin to turn to what kids are buying at the grocery store. One food company is making major improvements in what they offer and how they market it to kids. Giant Eagle is in the process of installing the go-to kid sections, labeled "Kids' Healthy Snack Zone," in about 400 stores in the mid-Atlantic and Ohio. And Walmart is piloting the concept in 30 stores in California, with plans to roll it out to 1,500 stores later this fall. Bolthouse Farms is responsible for making this effort in grocery stores throughout the US. They are the same company that released the extreme baby carrot campaign, which marketed ranch and chili-lime dusted carrots as go-to snacks for kids. The company has been ...
Recently the New Mexico Student Nutrition Bureau went above and beyond the new standards set by the USDA's Smart Snacks regulations. The New Mexico standards will allow only nuts, seeds, yogurt, cheese and fresh fruit to be sold during the school day from vending machines in middle and high schools, with other snacks not available until 30 minutes after the school day ends. They are also updating their vending standards, encouraging elementary schools to have only water, low-fat/fat-free milk, or soy milk in their machines. Middle and High Schools have to meet strict size and calorie standards for 100% fruit juices, carbonated beverages, and flavored waters. Fundraisers are also addressed in New Mexico's new standards, allowing groups to do only one hour of fundraising during the ...
Bag the Junk brings a easy guide to being prepared for the new snack changes that start this 2014-15 school year. Good News – Healthier Rules for School Snack Food are Now in Place and We’ve Got the skinny on How They Can Work for You and Your Students! The USDA “Smart Snacks” rule applies to all foods sold for consumption at school that are not part of the national school breakfast and lunch programs (vending machines, a la carte items, school stores, fundraisers, etc.). Using the resources below can make changing your school’s food environment as easy as eating an apple. Top 5 Resources to help you prepare for new Smart Snacks rules: Find Smart Snacks guidelines HERE.
Find complete USDA Smart Snacks materials HERE.
To know whether a particular food ...
It doesn't have to be a challenge for corner stores to offer healthy items. In fact, many corner stores already sell healthy snacks like fruits, baked chips, and nuts, but they are hard to find and out of view of customers. A corner store in Durham, SC, where over 13% of residents are Latino, has partnered with the Durham County Department of Public Health to make their healthier options more attractive to customers. Express Mart, a corner store in North Durham, hopes to increase access to healthy foods in a neighborhood with few healthy options. When costumers walk into the store, they will find bright labels making the “good for you” items easy to find and a basket of fresh fruit at the register to encourage healthy eating. The team took it a step further by replacing ...
